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Author
Topic: VZ2008 Buyers Beware (Read 11125 times)

White Snake 82

Gentlemen: I recently purchased two VZ2008's from J&G sales and I am disappointed! One of them is very nice and cleaned up well, but the other has issues. I always check and inspect my purchases at the FFL dealer when they come in, but this one slipped by my initial inspection until I took it home and cleaned it. It appears that Century Arms is using black spray paint to cover the faded dust covers and the front sight bases. Where the pins were put in to apply the front sight base to the barrel, there is a lot what appears to be scraping or use of a punch that slipped when they hammered them in. They just spray painted over it and it came off when I used my Break Free cleaner. These issues are cosmetic and can easily be fixed, but there is a crack in my upper hand guard and that is completely unacceptable.

I just got off of the phone with J&G sales and I was told that I had to wait until Monday to speak with customer service. I also asked the sales representative if they check the weapons prior to shipping them out? He stated that they just grab the boxes and mail them without checking them; wow! I found this hard to believe and if this is true, it is a little concerning. I will call on Monday and I will keep you guys updated on the customer service and my replacement.

Hope you will keep us updated! I've been patiently waiting for Czechpoint to start offering the VZ-58 in .223 Hi-Cap but the "itch" has been getting unbearable and I have been thinking of getting one of these inexpensive VZ2008s just to keep myself from going nuts. Now I am wondering again......

How they handle the issues you've had will probably decide things for me.

Remember your warranteee is very likely gone, as it starts the day the rifle is built, not when it is sold to a consumer. J&G is a great outfit, good people, and they will probably try to make right for ya.I might still have the poly upper handguard from my Czechpoint vz-58 if you want that.

Im glad a lot of you fellas had luck with century weapons. I have not. I have 1 firearm out of 4 that were worth 2 cents. This kinda of work from century is not uncommon. Before I buy a century gun I gotta see it... thats the downfall of ordering online. I hope they make it right!

Ok another century pile on in action. Sorry you have a crack in your hand guard. I am going to go way out on a limb here and predict you will get a replacement. Bold I know given you are dealing with the devil who shockingly doesn't work the weekend.

I got 2 vz2008. Both sight bases look parked. The one in real wood the top cover was parked. The other is original czech gray. Receiver and barrel etc fit and finish the same, pretty good. The only criticism I have at all is one the sight tower may be like 1/16 inch set too far back to index the muzzle brake properly. A 2$ crush washer took care of that. I would of blamed the brake except the other one fit perfectly. Both performed perfectly at the range using 3 different types of ammo. Once the bolt didn't lock after the last round but that could of been the magazine's fault.

If you end up hating it that bad and want to play lets make a deal send me a message.

Im glad a lot of you fellas had luck with century weapons. I have not. I have 1 firearm out of 4 that were worth 2 cents. This kinda of work from century is not uncommon. Before I buy a century gun I gotta see it... thats the downfall of ordering online. I hope they make it right!

Sad, but true.

I started dealing with them back when their operations were in Vermont during the heyday of FAL parts kits importation. They developed a reputation for seeking the absolute cheapest way to put a gun together. In my big box o' parts, I still have a handful of Century FAL hammers that are so out of spec, they stop halfway through the swing. Then there was the fiasco with the MAS 49/56 rifles. And the hits just keep on coming.

If you are going to buy a gun put together by the angry beavers at Century, go into it with your eyes open and be prepared for warranty returns or to repair it yourself.

Logged

_______________________________________I have nothing interesting to put in my signature.

There are lousy Century builds and there are great Century builds. Yugo M70AB2 builds are generally top notch, though L1A1 sporters sucked. Cetme builds are 50-50. GP75s, on the other hand, are great builds like M70AB2s. The current batch of VZ58s (VZ2008) from Century are getting almost universally exceptionally high marks- from those who actually have them. So far, other than an occasional minor glitch, all the negatives come from CZ elitists who don't have Century VZs. My $349 CAI is so good, I would match it with a Czechpoint. Fit and finish on mine are 100%. Most parts look "as new". Not too long ago, a board member described a horrible CZ made one.

Someone send me a vz-2008 and I will be happy to compare and contrast with a Czechpoint vz-58. If I had the extra scratch I would just buy one, even with my bad history with Century, just to be objective. In the meantime, this is more of an issue not between the OP and Century, but the OP and J&G Sales, an excellent outfit local to me with good people. I also predict J&G Sales will make it right, but I made my offer just in case, and because I happened to notice it was on my closet shelf right before I read this thread.

I'm a little confused at the notion that this is some sort of CAI bashing society. I read a lot here, but don't participate much as I don't have a VZ-58 yet.

Reading through all the posts on these guns (and not just this thread) I don't get the idea that this is some sort of CAI bashing society. Rather it seems to me that CAI (like many other importers) has had some fairly serious "issues" at some point in their existence. Issues that may or may not have been corrected.

This is not uncommon. At one time, Spanish Shotguns were considered "Junk". It took a long time, but that notion has been changed and Spanish doubles are now considered to be some of the better doubles made.

The same is true of Turkish shotguns. 10 years ago it was common to hear comments like "Tomato stake", "boat anchor" or "handles like a 2x4" when referring to Turkish shotguns. Now they are beginning to be recognized for making some fine shotguns.

What about the Winchester shotguns made in Japan??? For a long time they were considered junk. For that matter when I was a kid "Made in Japan" was synonymous with "junk". Certainly not the case now.

As a fairly impartial observer it appears to me that CAI had some fairly serious QC issues at some point and that like most anything else, "You only get one chance to make a first impression". Once someone decides that a certain company does not produce quality merchandise it's very hard to change their minds. I'm a perfect example. For over 10 years now I've refused to buy anything made by Remington due to lousy experiences with 2 of their guns I bought.

The fact that some gun owners here had some fairly serious problems with CAI guns and that they say so does not make this a "CAI bashing society" any more than happy CAI owners posting here makes this a "CAI Love Fest".

Part of hanging out on gun forums involves the fact that you are going to run into people that don't like your preferred brand of gun. Happens to me all the time because I am a fan of Turkish made doubles.

There are plenty of people here who think well of their CAI guns....and plenty who don't like the ones they bought and got rid off. And then their are people like me who have to read what the two sides have to say and make our own decisions on how to spend out hard earned cash.

Nobody should complain just because they don't like what someone has to say.

Turkish doubles?!? Why those are nothing but...pretty darn well made guns.

Yes, lets leave it to the merits of the individual guns. But, as stated before, Century DID earn their negative reputation, and I sincerely hope they are trying to dig their way out of that hole by making quality vz-2008s.

Reading through all the posts on these guns (and not just this thread) I don't get the idea that this is some sort of CAI bashing society. Rather it seems to me that CAI (like many other importers) has had some fairly serious "issues" at some point in their existence. Issues that may or may not have been corrected.

Yes, I agree. When the subject of Century-assembled weaons comes up, there's no denying the obvious. I don't see how an objective dialogue can be had on the subject without factoring in Century's spotty reputation.

I own two vz58 rifles; a D-Technik and a Century VZ2008. Overall, the D-Technik is a better rifle with regards to fit and finish. The trigger is better on my VZ2008, but that's about it. The thing I'm really glad about is, most or all of the complaints about the Century version of the vz58 seem to be centered around fit issues and cosmetics. I'm not seeing comments like, say for example, the receiver is out of spec in some way and it's causing jams or headspacing issues. AFAIC, stuff like that is a death sentence for a rifle. I won't have anything like that. No, for the Century-built 58, it seems that unless they really dinged the Hell out of something during the build, just about everything can be corrected by a good refinisher and a small handful of replacement parts.